SEOUL, South Korea (AP) 鈥� The head of the U.N.鈥檚 nuclear watchdog said Wednesday that 鈥渧ery detailed鈥� measures to verify must be included in a potential U.S.-Iran agreement to end their war in the Middle East.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director General stressed the need for the thorough verification regime for Iran鈥檚 nuclear program, as U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that with Iran could happen over the next two days.
The Trump administration has said that preventing Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon is a key war aim. Iran has previously said it isn’t developing such weapons but rejected limits on its nuclear program.
Last weekend in Pakistan, between the two countries failed to produce an agreement. The White House said Iran鈥檚 nuclear ambitions were a central sticking point. But an Iranian diplomatic official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the closed-door talks, denied that negotiations had failed over Iran鈥檚 nuclear ambitions.
鈥淚ran has a very ambitious, wide nuclear program so all of that will require the presence of IAEA inspectors,鈥� Grossi told reporters in Seoul. 鈥淥therwise, you will not have an agreement. You will have an illusion of an agreement.鈥�
He said that any agreement on nuclear technology 鈥渞equires very detailed verification mechanisms.鈥�
Iran has not allowed the IAEA access to its nuclear facilities bombed by Israel and the United States during a 12-day war in June, according to a circulated to member states and seen by The Associated Press in February.
The report stressed that it 鈥渃annot verify whether Iran has suspended all enrichment-related activities,鈥� or the 鈥渟ize of Iran鈥檚 uranium stockpile at the affected nuclear facilities.鈥�
Iran has long insisted its program is peaceful, but the IAEA and Western nations say Tehran had an organized nuclear weapons program up until 2003.
The IAEA has maintained Iran has a stockpile of 440.9 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
That stockpile could allow Iran to build as many as 10 nuclear bombs, should it decide to weaponize its program, Grossi said earlier.
Such highly enriched nuclear material should normally be verified every month, according to the IAEA鈥檚 guidelines.
During Wednesday鈥檚 press conference, Grossi also said his agency has confirmed 鈥渁 rapid increase鈥� in activities at nuclear facilities in North Korea. His comments echoed a view by many foreign observers that North Korea has taken steps to expand its main Yongbyon nuclear complex and build additional since its diplomacy with the U.S. collapsed in 2019.
Last September, South Korea鈥檚 Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said that North Korea was operating and that they were running everyday.
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